Ricoh Company, Ltd.

Dow Corning Toray Company, Ltd.

Kumiko Seo

Toshiyuki Kabata

Masahiro Ishida

Naoki Matsuda

Teruyoshi Tanaka

Hiroshi Nakai

A drive device includes a plurality of gears; and a grease composition that is held on a tooth flank of at least one gear of the gears. The at least one gear is made of a resin. The grease composition contains a hydrocarbon base oil, lithium soap serving as a thickener, and olefin resin powder. A weight ratio between the hydrocarbon base oil and the lithium soap in the grease composition is in a range of 94.5:5.5 to 96.0:4.0. A consistency of the grease composition is in a range of 360 to 400.

Drive device, image forming apparatus, and grease composition

A drive device includes a gear having a hole; a shaft that passes through the hole; and a grease composition that is held in a clearance between the shaft and an inner peripheral surface of the hole. The gear rotates on a peripheral surface of the shaft. At least one of the gear and the shaft is made of a resin. The clearance is in a range of 10 to 110 &#x3bc;m. The grease composition contains a hydrocarbon base oil and lithium soap serving as a thickener. A weight ratio of the hydrocarbon base oil to the lithium soap is in a range of 94.5:5.5 to 96.0:4.0. A consistency of the grease composition is in a range of 360 to 400.

A drive device includes a slide bearing; a shaft that passes through the slide bearing; a gear that is fixed to the shaft; and a grease composition that is held in a clearance between the slide bearing and the shaft. At least one of the slide bearing and the shaft is made of a resin. The clearance is in a range of 10 to 110 &#x3bc;m. The grease composition contains a hydrocarbon base oil and lithium soap serving as a thickener. A weight ratio of the hydrocarbon base oil to the lithium soap is in a range of 94.5:5.5 to 96.0:4.0. A consistency of the grease composition is in a range of 360 to 400.

An image forming apparatus including multiple photoreceptors; multiple chargers that charge the respective photoreceptors; a latent image forming device that forms respective latent images on the respective charged photoreceptors; multiple developing devices that develop the respective latent images into respective toner images; multiple transfer devices that transfer the respective toner images onto an intermediate transfer member; multiple cleaning devices that remove residues remaining on the respective photoreceptors after transferring the respective toner images therefrom; and one or more BN-containing protective agent applicators that apply a BN-containing protective agent comprising a metal soap and boron nitride to the respective photoreceptors. The total number of the photoreceptors is N being an integer of 2 or more, and the total number of the BN-containing protective agent applicators is between 1 and N&#x2212;1.

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Kanagawa, Japan

Kumiko Seo